What is the WCCD?

Created by Cities, for Cities

Discovering solutions for our rapidly urbanizing planet, the World Council on City Data (WCCD) is the global leader in standardized city data - creating smart, sustainable, resilient, and prosperous cities.

The WCCD hosts a network of innovative cities committed to improving services and quality of life with open city data and provides a consistent and comprehensive platform for standardized urban metrics. The WCCD is a global hub for creative learning partnerships across cities, international organizations, corporate partners, and academia to further innovation, envision alternative futures, and build better and more liveable cities.

ISO 37120

Indicators for City Services and Quality of Life, the first international standard on city data, was published in May 2014 by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). This new international standard was developed using the framework of the Global City Indicators Facility that has been extensively tested by more than 250 cities worldwide. This is a demand-led standard, driven and created by cities, for cities. ISO 37120 defines and establishes definitions and methodologies for a set of indicators to steer and measure the performance of city services and quality of life.

The standard includes a comprehensive set of 100 indicators — of which 46 are core — that measures a city's social, economic, and environmental performance.

The indicators are categorized under 17 themes on city services and quality of life

ISO 37120 was developed using the Global City Indicator Facility
(GCIF) framework with its network of over 250 cities globally and input form leading industry experts within the ISO Technical Committee on Sustainable Development of Communities (ISO/TC 286).

WCCD Foundation Cities

The WCCD has successfully piloted ISO 37120 with the Foundation Cities shown below.

All Foundation Cities are now certified against ISO 37120 and included in the Global Cities Registry™ for ISO 37120. Data from the Foundation Cities can be viewed in the WCCD Open Data Portal.

Benefits of Globally Standardized Indicators for Cities

Standardized indicators enable cities to assess their performance, measure progress over time, and also to draw comparative lessons from other cities locally and globally.

Cities need a global set of globally standardized indicators to:

Manage

and make informed decisions through data analysis

Benchmark

and target

Leverage Funding

with senior levels of government

Plan

and establish new frameworks for sustainable urban development

Evaluate

the impact of infrastructure projects on the overall performance of a city

WCCD ISO 37120 Certification

An International Organization for Standardization (ISO) standard gives world-class specifications for products, services, and systems to ensure quality, safety, and efficiency.

Benefits of Certification

Categorized under 17 themes and 100 indicators for city services and quality of life, ISO 37120 certification will guide your city towards a smart, sustainable, resilient, and prosperous future armed with independently verified and globally comparable city data. WCCD certification ensures data reliability with third party verification. There are numerous benefits and applications of ISO 37120 certification in cities, but overall conformity with ISO 37120 will lead to responsible city building.